Notes Chapter 11 Lesson 1
Southwest Asia == Middle East
What is Southwest Asia?
It is the crossroads between 3 continents.
+ Europe
+ Africa
+ Asia
What are the major religions of Southwest Asia?
It is the birthplace of three major religions.
+ Islam
+ Christianity
+ Judaism
What is it called?
It can be referred to as The Middle East or Southwest Asia.
Points to remember….
+ Southwest Asia is the WORLDS PRIMARY source for oil.
+ It has the largest supply of oil.
+made of 15 different countries.
+Palestinian Authority- Not a country- Political organization
Who is Southwest Asia influenced by?
+ The region is influenced by all 3 continents; Europe, Africa, and Asia.
And the 3 dominant world religions; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
all have ties to the area.
What are the benefits of being surrounded by water?
+ It is mostly surrounded by water.
+Southwest Asia, based on its location to major waterways has become
a major trading center.
+It is surrounded by the Mediterranean, Caspian, Arabian, Black, and
Red Seas.
+Modern day Southwest Asia is still a major trading crossroad.
+ Turkey controls the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits
What is a strait?
+ A narrow waterway that connects 2 large bodies of water.
+ The Bosporus and the Dardanelles link the Black Sea to the
Mediterranean Sea making it a major waterway for parts of Russia.
What are the landforms of Southwest Asia?
+ There are a wide variety of landforms.
+ Turkey and Iran have the highest mountains.
+ Mountains affect movement, rainfall, and have created earthquakes in
the region.
What are the major Mountian Regions in Southwest
Asia?
+ Pontic
+ Taurus
+ Elburz
+ Zagros
What are some other landforms in Southwest
Asia?
+ Plateaus
+ Anatolian Plateau lies to the north of Taurus Mountains.
+ Iranian Plateau lies to the east of the Zagros Mountains and is much
drier because of a great salt desert.
What are the Deserts in Southwest Asia?
+ The Syrian Desert in Syria.
+ The Rub’al Khali and the An Nafud in Saudi Arabia.
What are some of the problems that lack of moisture
has created?
+A higher demand for fresh water
+ Israel and Jordan struggle for control of the Jordan River
+ Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flow of the mountains in Turkey,
through Syria and Iraq, then emptying into the Persian Gulf.
+ The 2 rivers surround an area called Mesopotamia.
Mesopotamia, part of the Fertile Crescent!
+ Literally means “land between the rivers”
+ Mesopotamia is rich in history
+ Known as “cradle of civilization”
+ Dates back to 1500 BC
+ Many cultures, languages, and writings where born out of
Mesopotamia.
+ The earliest language was Sumerian.
What are the 3 sub regions of Southwest Asia?
+ The Middle East
+The Arabian Peninsula
+The Northern Tier of Non- Arab nations
What is the Middle East?
+ The area between the East Indies and China.
+ Geographers believe that the Middle East is the areas of Iraq, Syria,
Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, and Palestinian Authority.
+ Middle East-is the Middle of the Muslim world that reaches far to
Europe and Africa.
Arabian Peninsula
+Shaped like a rectangle
+Corner of Southwest Asia
+Mostly Desert
+Little population
+Nomads
+Oil
+Home to Muhammad
Northern Tier
+3 non- Arab countries of the north
+Turkey, Iran, and Cyprus (an island)
Essay Questions!!!!!!
+ Describe the relationship between the Suez Canal and
World trade.
What canal in the Americas serves a similar purpose?
+ Why is the Southwest Asia an area surrounded by
World Conflict?